KARACHI: President Asif Ali Zardari has said the Sindh government should improve by December 31, warning that otherwise the entire setup of the provincial government would be changed.
In a meeting chaired by the president at the Bilawal House, the Sindh government had presented its new plan of action for the reconstruction of the flood-affected areas.
An insider present at the meeting told Pakistan Today that President Zardari expressed displeasure on the dismal performance of the Sindh government and was particularly annoyed with Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah and a few other provincial cabinet members.
The president was irked by the fact that the Sindh government had failed to deliver on the promises made during the last briefing. Zardari said he was briefed six weeks ago that floodwater would be drained from the province’s towns and agricultural lands within a short period of time, but the Sindh government had failed to do that.
“People are not able to go from one city to another and ministers are always busy making tall claims,” the insider quoted the president as saying. The president was also upset that most of the provincial ministers were not going to their areas and assisting the flood-hit people. The president had directed the chief minister and the provincial ministers that floodwater must be drained from all cities and towns.
The insider said the president was particularly dissatisfied with the performance of the provincial chief executive and if the Sindh government fails to deliver within the given deadline, the president might consider replacing him as well as some provincial ministers. Sources said two names being considered for the Sindh chief minister’s position were Sindh Assembly Speaker Nisar Khuhro and provincial Finance Minister Murad Ali Shah.
Separately, the Sindh government had formed a committee of irrigation experts that presented its report in last month. Former Sindh irrigation secretary Adrees Rajput, who was a member of the committee, told Pakistan Today that the president’s annoyance was understandable as the Sindh government never acted on the recommendations of the committee.
